Method and apparatus for extracting lodged projectiles

ABSTRACT

A method for removing lodged projectiles wherein said method comprises the steps of: removing a barrel containing lodged projectile from a weapons system having a detachable launch barrel; placing the removed barrel in an elongated cradle having one opening in each of two end walls; aligning the longitudinal axis of the barrel with the center of said two openings; positioning the shaft of a torque-to-thrust jack in axial alignment with said openings, said one of openings surrounding the breech end of the barrel; advancing said shaft until its forward end makes contact with the lodged projectile; and further advancing said shaft until the lodged projectile is pushed out of the muzzle of the barrel. The forward tip of the shaft includes a concave rubber disc for frictionally engaging the rear end of the projectile, whereby the shaft rotates with the advancing projectile.

11] 3,750,262 1451 Aug. 7, 1973 METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EXTRACTING LODGED PROJECTILES [75] Inventor: Willis 11. Taylor, 111, Clifton, NJ.

[73] Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army, Washington, DC.

[22] Filed: Oct. 26, 1971 [2]] Appl. No.: 192,100

[52] U.S. Cl 29/427, 29/200 D, 29/256,

' 42/1 F, 81/305 [51] Int. Cl 823p 19/02 [58] Field of Search 29/426, 427, 432,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 975,304 11/1910 Veno 29/260 1,377,469 5/1921 Erickson..... 29/256 1,565,776 9/1924 Benedict 291260 Primary ExaminerCharles W. Lanham Assistant Examiner-Joseph A. Walkowski Attorney-1-1arry M. Saragovitz, Edward J. Kelly et a1.

[57] ABSTRACT A method for removing lodged projectiles wherein said method comprises the steps of: removing a barrel containing lodged projectile from a weapons system having a detachable launch barrel; placing the removed barrel in an elongated cradle having one opening in each of two end walls; aligning the longitudinal axis of the barrel with the center of said two openings; positioning the shaft of a torque-to-thrust jack in axial alignment with said openings, said one of openings surrounding the breech end of the barrel; advancing said shaft until its forward end makes contact with the lodged projectile; and further advancing said shaft until the lodged projectile is pushed out of the muzzle of the barrel. The forward tip of the shaft includes a concave rubber disc for frictionally engaging the rear end of the projectile, whereby the shaft rotates with the advancing projectile.

7 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EXTRACTING LODGED PROJECTILES The invention described herein may be manufactured, used and licensed by or for the Government of the United States for governmental purposes without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to that field of art dealing with those tools and devices constructed for the extraction of shells and projectiles from the bore of the barrel of a weapon system having a readily detachable barrel. Such weapon systems are generally utilized with lower caliber munitions, i.e., about 40 millimeters and below. These systems include a variety of grenade launchers.

Development of the present extraction method and apparatus was prompted by considerations of safety and efficiency. It was necessary to find a means of extracting live, lodged projectiles from grenade launcher barrels in a safe and expeditious manner. This need arose from difficulties which explosive ordnance disposal personnel had encountered in extracting live lodged projectiles. It had become necessary to destroy most barrels having a projectile lodged in them. Hence, it was concluded that the basic prior art technique of bell-ramming a lodged munition out in the direction of the muzzle was inadequate.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus by which lodged live projectiles may be safely and easily removed from a detached barrel of a weapons system.

The present invention comprises the steps of: removing a barrel containing a lodged projectile from a weapons system having a detachable launch barrel; placing the removed barrel in an elongated cradle having one opening in each of two width-length sidewalls; aligning the longitudinal axis of the barrel with the centers of said two openings; positioning the shaft of a torque-tothrust jack in axial alignment with said openings, one of said openings surrounding the breech end of the barrel; advancing said shaft until its forward end makes contact with the lodged projectile; and further advancing said shaft until the jammed projectile is pushed out of the muzzle of the barrel. The Forward end of the shaft includes a friction means, such as a concave rubber disc, for frictionally engaging the rear end of the projectile, whereby the shaft rotates with the advancing projectile.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the present extraction apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a top view of said apparatus.

FIG. 3 is a rear plan view of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a front plan view of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The extraction apparatus comprises an elongated cradle (see FIGS. I and 2) which is suited for receiving a barrel 12 having a live projectile lodged in it. The cradle 10 has a first opening 14 (see FIG. 4) in the front endwall l6 and a second opening 18 (see FIG. 1) in a rear endwall 20. Protruding ears 22 hold the barrel l2 in place. A variety of ears can be placed in the extraction apparatusto accommodate barrels of varying sizes. The cradle 10 includes a shoulder or other means (not shown) for preventing forward movement of the barrel 12 therein Integral to the cradle 10 is a tor que-to-thrust jack 24 having a linear actuation shaft 26. The shaft 26 is axially aligned with the openings 14' and 18. The end of the shaft 26 of the jack 24 should be made of brass with a resilient concave rubber disc 28 (see FIG. 1) attached to the tip thereof.

In operation, a detached barrel 12 containing a lodged live projectile is placed in the cradle 10, on the ears 22. The barrel is positioned with the muzzle end at the front of the cradle 10 and within the second opening 18 and the breech end at the rear of the cradle 10. The barrel bore is axially aligned with the centers of the openings 14 and 18. The shaft 26 is advanced into the barrel 12 by turning ahandle 30 until contact is made with the lodged projectile (not shown). In brass portion of the shaft, being of a soft metal and nonsparking, will neither damage the bore of the barrel, nor will it give rise to a safety hazard.

The concave rubber disc 28 will not only act as a bumper cushion, but will readily conform to the spherical contour of a grenade projectile developing a surface friction therewith so that during further advancement of the shaft, said shaft rotates with the lodged projectile. The shaft 26, after engaging the projectile, is further advanced until the projectile falls out of the muzzle into a catch-trough 32.

The jack selected for the present application was a durable model that would lift or push up to 6,000 lbs. with a minimum of cranking. A ball-screw mechanism type was chosen as suitable to this end. A 6,000 lb. capacity is necessary to provide an added safety factor should a cocked projectile or a projectile with a distorted rotating band be encountered during extraction.

The cradle assembly may consist of welded aluminum with one inch stock for the sidewalls and endwalls.

The procedure of cranking the handle 30 may, if desired, be performed by a simple motor operated by a remote electrical control.

Also, the entire apparatus may be enveloped with shock absorbent material, thus affording even greater safety in the event of an unexpected explosion of the lodged projectile.

After the projectile is extracted, the shaft 26 should be retracted into the jack base so as to prevent possible damage to it.

In addition, the jack should be greased at least once a year with a lubricant such as molybdendum disulfide.

It is thus seen from the above that the object set forth in the Summary of the Invention is among those made apparent'from and, efficiently attained by, the method and apparatus of the preceding description.

I wish it to be understood that I do not desire to be limited to the exact detail of construction shown and described for obvious modification will occur to persons skilled in the art.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, useful and nonobvious and accordingly secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A method for removing lodged projectiles, wherein said method comprises the steps of:

advancing said shaft until its forward end makes contact with the lodged projectile; further advancing said shaft until the lodged projectile is pushed out of the muzzle of the barrel; and developing a surface friction between the tip of said shaft and said projectile, whereby said shaft rotates with said projectile during said further advancement of said shaft. 7 2. The method as recited in claim 1 in which said method further comprises:

catching the extracted projectile as it falls out of the muzzle of the barrel, thus reducing unnecessary shock to the extracted projectile. 3. The method as recited in claim 2 in which said method further comprises: enveloping the extraction apparatus with shock absorbent material, therein affording a greater measure of safety.

4. The method as recited in claim 3 wherein the shaft of the jack is advanced by use of a remote control electrical system.

5. The apparatus for removing a lodged projectile from a launch barrel of a weapon system having a-detachable barrel, wherein said apparatus comprises:

an elongated cradle for receiving the detachable barrel, said cradle having one opening in each of the two endwalls;

a torque-to-thrust jack integrally depending from said cradle, said jack having a rotatable liner actuation shaft axially aligned with the bore of said barrel wherein the lodged projectile is pushed out of the bore by the forward advance of the linear actuation shaft, said linear activation shaft being rotat-v able in said cradle and having a friction means at its tip engageable with said lodged projectile, whereby said shaft rotates with said projectile during said advance of said shaft.

6. The apparatus as recited in claim 5 wherein said shaft is constructed of brass and said tip comprises a concave rubber disc.

7. The apparatus as recited in claim 5 wherein said torque-to-thrust jack is a ball-screw jack. 

1. A method for removing lodged projectiles, wherein said method comprises the steps of: removing a barrel containing a lodged projectile from a weapon system having a detachable launch barrel; supporting the removed barrEl in an elongated cradle having one opening in each of its two endwalls, with one of said openings surrounding the breech end of the barrel; aligning the bore of the barrel with the centers of said openings; positioning the shaft of a torque-to-thrust jack in axial alignment with said openings; advancing said shaft until its forward end makes contact with the lodged projectile; further advancing said shaft until the lodged projectile is pushed out of the muzzle of the barrel; and developing a surface friction between the tip of said shaft and said projectile, whereby said shaft rotates with said projectile during said further advancement of said shaft.
 2. The method as recited in claim 1 in which said method further comprises: catching the extracted projectile as it falls out of the muzzle of the barrel, thus reducing unnecessary shock to the extracted projectile.
 3. The method as recited in claim 2 in which said method further comprises: enveloping the extraction apparatus with shock absorbent material, therein affording a greater measure of safety.
 4. The method as recited in claim 3 wherein the shaft of the jack is advanced by use of a remote control electrical system.
 5. The apparatus for removing a lodged projectile from a launch barrel of a weapon system having a detachable barrel, wherein said apparatus comprises: an elongated cradle for receiving the detachable barrel, said cradle having one opening in each of the two endwalls; a torque-to-thrust jack integrally depending from said cradle, said jack having a rotatable liner actuation shaft axially aligned with the bore of said barrel wherein the lodged projectile is pushed out of the bore by the forward advance of the linear actuation shaft, said linear activation shaft being rotatable in said cradle and having a friction means at its tip engageable with said lodged projectile, whereby said shaft rotates with said projectile during said advance of said shaft.
 6. The apparatus as recited in claim 5 wherein said shaft is constructed of brass and said tip comprises a concave rubber disc.
 7. The apparatus as recited in claim 5 wherein said torque-to-thrust jack is a ball-screw jack. 